Is It Cool or Self-Indulgent When People Publish Their Novels-in-Progress?
So, I’m about to reveal a secret: I’ve been working on a novel for eleven months now and I’m probably at the half-way mark. I spent six whole months trying to figure out how to approach, conceptualize, and package the story I wanted to write, and then I just dove into it. I have about 50,000 words written and *fingers crossed* I think some of it is actually quite good. (I’m surprised, honestly, because I only recently (like within the last year) started reading really quality fiction and masterpieces of literature, and almost all of my formal education on writing has focused on journalism).
So, I’m playing around with the idea of publishing excerpts from my novel-in-progress here, but I didn’t want to do it without getting some feedback. Is that cool or is that silly? Like, sometimes I think it’s weird when first-time novelists publish pieces of their writing that hasn’t been shown yet to their agents (or who haven’t gotten an agent yet), but when James Frey started publishing bits of his new novel on his blog a year or so ago, I personally savored it.
What would we think about that? Also, is it a good idea or a bad idea to share the title? IDK, I feel a little weird about divulging too much too soon, but then again, seeking out feedback is almost always a good thing! What do you think?
Dave Lucas | November 30th, 2008 at 4:16 am
Hi Liz: it is said that everyone has a good book in him/her. The key to what happens next is marketing. Before they got fat, rock group Metallica distributed free cassettes to everyone who attended their concerts. Later on they were at the forefront of stopping music from being copied. Go figure.
A more contemporary example is Sir Lankan rapper M.I.A.
The pretty much underground artist encouraged “illegal” downloading of her albums despite appearing on a major label. It paid off big time when a Hollywood movie picked up “Paper Planes” as one of its soundtrack tunes. Suddenly, mainstream success happened.
The strength of your budding literary career may or may not be measured by a single book, but if the book itself is strong it will carry you whether or not chapters are “leaked.” Good luck, and Peaceful Blessings!